1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to weather seals and more particularly, to an adjustable weather seal for the bottom of vertically opening doors.
2. Description of Related Art
Currently, conventional garage door seals are made as combination door stops and seals. Typically these seals have a rigid base with a flexible sealing lip, wherein the sealing lip generally protrudes from the base at an angle. For example Stutzman in U.S. Pat. No. 4,525,953 Weather Seal with Wide Range of Flexure discloses a seal having a base section that is secured to the bottom edge of a door and a resilient arm section of sufficient dimension to provide a range of flexure extending away from an end portion of the base section and back and under the door to resiliently engage an end section against the floor surface. The end section extends back from the arm section at an acute angle and, with the door in a closed position, the arm section provides a substantially constant loading of a sealing surface in engagement with the floor surface for the full extent of the garage door.
Cole and Lillie U.S. Pat. No. 4,447,988 for Garage Door Weather Seal disclose a garage door weather seal for use on a garage, the weather seal having a door with a planar outside surface and a door frame including a surface normal to the plane of the garage door when closed. The weather seal disclosed by Cole and Lillie comprises a main body portion which lies in a plane extending at an angle to both the door and door frame surfaces when installed. Lips of the seal are integrally molded to opposite edges of the main body portion to form a weather-tight seal with both the surface of the garage door and the surface of the door frame. An L-shape leg structure connected with the main body portion serves to position the weather seal with respect to the door frame. The leg structure has two legs which deflect slightly to grip two surfaces of the door frame, one the above-mentioned surface and another normal thereto. One of the legs may have apertures for fasteners to hold the seal in place.
Yet another type of garage door seal is a coil type seal. Brookman and Jackson Weather in U.S. Pat. No. 5,029,079 disclose a coil type weather seal for a roll-up type garage door having a gap between the door and a support surface. This weather seal includes a base member secured to the support surface, and a block pivotally connected to the base member for pivotal movement relative to the base member. A sealing lip is connected to the block and has a first position in the plane of the base member, wherein the block has a means for engaging the support surface for pivotally moving the block and moving the sealing lip to a second position at an angle to the base member when installed so that the sealing lip engages the door to effect a seal between the door and the sealing lip.
One problem with the rigid base seals is that they must be sold in fixed cut lengths, rendering the replacement of rigid base seals costly when some portion of the seal becomes damaged or defective, and making them ineffective when they are applied to non-standard-sized doors. In addition, the rigid base seal cannot be compacted, which makes it cumbersome to package and transport.
And another problem with rigid or even flexible base seals comprised of unitized strips or pieces of material is that non-uniform or uneven gaps occur between garage doors and opposite stationary surfaces; in particular at the bottom of overhead garage doors. Overhead garage doors frequently have an uneven gap that is usually narrower at the center and wider at the ends due to the door sagging or resting upon an uneven floor. Even flexible base seals constructed from materials such as rubber or plastic have limitations in the ability of said seals to accommodate moderately rough or uneven floors. Therefore there is a need for an effective weather seal suitable for preventing cold air, snow, water and the like from entering the garage along the bottom of a garage door, even when the garage door rests upon an uneven or non-smooth floor or surface.
Therefore in view of the prior art mechanisms and devices for sealing garage doors and the like, the present invention is disclosed an improvement over the prior artxe2x80x94the invention comprising adjustable, mutually engaging and independently movable blocks for attaching to and sealing a garage door or the like. The sealing device and mechanisms have several advantages that are expressed by objects of its design and structure.
A first object of the present invention is to provide a weather seal for a vertically opening door capable of sealing the bottom of the door, even when the door rests upon a highly irregular or uneven surface.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a weather seal that is adjustable and adaptable to variations in the distance from the door to the sill or floor upon which the door normally rests; when such variations are caused by wear and tear on the door hinging mechanisms.
And another object of the present invention is to provide a weather seal which is modular, meaning that the entire seal does not have to be replaced if a portion thereof becomes damaged or defective, or if additional variations occur in the sill.
And yet another object of the present invention is to provide a weather seal that prevents a wooden door from rotting by resting against an inside sill or floor and trapping water between said door and said sill or floor.
These objects plus other advantages of the present invention will become clear and apparent from the descriptions and drawings included hereafter.
And therefore in accordance with these objects and other objects, a disclosure is made herein of a weather seal comprising a plurality of independent, adjustable blocks, constructed to mutually, and cooperatively engage and jointly seal against intrusion of water and weather when attached to the bottom of a door.
These adjustable, independent blocks are attached to the bottom, inside of a door in a manner that permits individual blocks to move up and down, vertically and therefore to rest upon the garage sill or floor when the door is down and in unlocked position. Each block that is adjacent to a given block can, also, move independently and vertically with respect to that given block, while being constrained from moving horizontally or from moving in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the door. Therefore if the elevation of garage floor or sill is changing in a irregular fashion, the combined independent, vertical moving blocks can still seal the space between the door and the floor or sill.
Each adjustable, independent block is fastened to the bottom, inside of a door using a fastening means, as an example, a common screw, which is not tightened sufficiently to hold each block immovable. When a screw is used as a fastening means, each screw is attached to the bottom of the door, and passes through its respective block within a pre-cut slotted opening within each said block. Each slotted opening is dimensioned to permit the screw to pass through the slotted opening and attach to a door, while permitting the block to slide up and down without the screw binding or constraining vertical movement.
The slot opening has a reset for receiving the screw head, so that the top of the screw head will be below the surface of the block, when the screw is completely screwed into the door.
Preferably each slot with recessed screw is covered with tape to prevent air or moisture from seeping through the slotted opening to the inside. Or if the blocks used are molded from plastic, an insertion cap will also be provided to insert tightly into the slotted opening to prevent water or dirt from collecting in the slotted opening.
When so attached, each adjustable block will ride up and down constrained to vertical movement by the screw engaging the slotted opening and each adjacent block independently moving. By providing independent, vertical movement, it can be seen that each block will conform to the height of the sill or garage floor immediately under the block when the door is down and held in a locked position.
It can also be seen that the door does not come in contact with the sill and therefore cannot trap moisture beneath said door; thereby eliminating a major cause of rot in wooden doors, or rusting and corrosion of metal doors.